Red City Radio: The Dangers of Standing StillThe Dangers of Standing Still (2011)Paper and Plastick

Reviewer Rating: 4

User Rating:

Contributed by: dinosaur_fartsoundsdinosaur_fartsounds(others by this writer | submit your own)Published on February 25th 2011Citing many of the conversations and readings I've come across over the years, a popular question surfaces up from time to time: "What happened to pop-punk?" Who really penned the blueprint for pop-punk and what did it define? Was it the iconic Descendents and a series of four-chord songs anchored i.

Citing many of the conversations and readings I've come across over the years, a popular question surfaces up from time to time: "What happened to pop-punk?" Who really penned the blueprint for pop-punk and what did it define? Was it the iconic Descendents and a series of four-chord songs anchored in love, heartache, fun and catchy riffs mostly delivered in under a few minutes?

Well, Red City Radio's The Dangers of Standing Still reminds me not of the Descendents, but definitely leaves the phrase "pop-punk" hanging on my tongue as I'm trying to describe this brand new album by this new band to my friends. Does modern punk work? How about "pop-punk for men"? God forbid "pop-punk for men" takes off, but if it does: You heard it here first. So, why call it that? For starters, The Dangers of Standing Still clocks in around 35 minutes–no song hits the four-minute mark–over the course of 12 blistering songs, and reminds me of a few other bands like Off with Their Heads, the Lawrence Arms, Madball (not initially) and the now-defunct Latterman. Holy shit does this remind me of the best stuff put out by Latterman, a band I totally missed during their lifetime. Now, back to why The Dangers of Standing Still could be considered "pop-punk for men."

Red City Radio's multi-source of vocals are all gruff and are thankfully devoid of nasally tones and whining; as I've pointed out elsewhere: "Not only do these guys make some tight music, but they embrace one of my absolute favorite pastimes: Drinking hundreds of beers." Whether or not this classifies a band, or any human, as "manly," is up for thoughtless fodder, but shows a band with personality and humor–what diva/tightwad band fesses up to something like that? There are no slow jams or ballads on this album–seriously, every song keeps up with the rhythm of a runaway truck on a downward slope. The Dangers of Standing Still's songs are fast; the lyrics cover a lot of ground (though it's a bit hard to keep up, really), the guitars are as buzzsaws should sound when distorted through an amplifier; the rhythm section is pretty tight and is slightly reminiscent of classic Rancid when Matt Freeman would lock in with Brett Reed on tracks like "International Cover-Up" and "Rats in the Hallway". Also, the production on this album is fairly balanced and quite tight. Ever squeeze your butt cheeks together as you run for the nearest toilet (when any one will do) after eating some stomach-ripping chili? The production is as tight as you'd need them butt cheeks to be.

So, can I put The Dangers of Standing Still on at a party and say I'm a fan of this band? Sure. Is this album a 10/10? To someone, surely, and it definitely would earn that, but for me, it takes a lot to get 10/10. However, these boys have made one hell of a first impression on me. Good work, guys; internet high-five.

"[The vocalist] sounds like Bender from Futurama if Bender were part overweight, drunk, depressed man"

While I don't agree with your review, I found this absolutely hilarious. Being a huge fan of both Futurama and sad, fat, drunk guys, I love this band! Most likely will be my album of the year. An easy 5 stars.

There is nothing quite so poignant as being surrounded by your best friends, belting lyrics at the top of your lungs, throwing beer, drinking beer, and getting lost in those rare and brief moments when music and community come together in an upswell of all around good feeling and unity. And if anyone thinks music should be anything but that, then I say "Sir, you have failed as a human being". It's time that we got back to the primal roots of music and expression, and this band does it better than most.

i finally got to listen to this after picking it up at their cd release show. it's fantastic and really well put together. the track flow isn't a bad thing. it keeps the groove going and doesn't slow things down. when they played these new songs live, they were even more awesome. every track is a keeper and the songwriting and vocal duties really show growth from a promising young band.

to the poster poster who thinks there are hundreds of bands that sound like this in the past three years I'd love to be directed to some because of the maybe 1000 records I've listened to in the past 3 years I haven't heard one. So I'd be stoked to hear some more, but you won't find me any tocuz you suck at listening to music like a bad blowjob wooooo hhhhhhaaaaaaaaa.

Do bands intentionally use bad art these days, or is it some kind of statement? Holy shit.

I listened to the EP they did before this and while it was kinda fun for a few listens, all the songs blended together big time. I can only assume the album will do the same for me after what I've read from some people.

i agree with swampass completely,
theyve managed to pull a gaslight anthem and write an album of catchy, four chord songs that sound the same but fool you into thinking its something more.
learn how to play more than power chords and octaves. and calm down on the woahs.

With all the hype these guys have been getting I was excited because I was pretty sure I was about to hear something great. Not quite.

Pros: Engineering is great but not too polished; melodies are catchy; lots of energy.

Cons: The songs all sound surprisingly similar, those same catchy melodies could easily become old quickly; I have no idea what the vocalist is saying, he sounds like Bender from Futurama if Bender were part overweight, drunk, depressed man; doesn't push the boundaries you'd expect with all the hype.

If I could decipher the lyrics I could probably enjoy this record more. So much of what I enjoy about this scene is the emphasis on relatable lyrics sung with a lot of heart (and you gotta have both!). I'm not saying it's bad, because it does show some promise, but I just can't get into something I can't understand. I heard everyone sings in the band, and that seemed like a cool idea, but the overabundance of whoas and many voices at once makes it feel formulaic and really makes it seem like a gimmick or just lazy songwriting.

I really don't want to come off as bashing but I just don't get the hype. I see some promise in these guys and I think I will check them out if they come to my area because I bet the live show is pretty fun, the record just falls flat.